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Month: October 2014

The best choir songs from the vast Walter Hawkins collection

Walter Hawkins, singing with the Hawkins Family and with the Love Center Choir, has brought us so many essential gospel choir songs that it’s difficult to narrow down a list of favorites. But here’s my list of the very best of his contributions to the choir repertoire.

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Changed

Lead singers love this song, but I think the best part is the gorgeous choir harmonies. The harmonies and rhythm on the verses were a departure from what everyone expected from gospel music at that time. And so beautifully done.

Thank You

I wrote a whole web page about “Thank You” because it’s one of the most important songs in the gospel choir repertoire. A lot of people would consider this to be Walter Hawkins’s masterpiece.

I was at a convention once and one of the bishops just started singing the verse out of the blue. Even though we were not his choir, he just knew that we would be ready to back him up. Even if there isn’t a choir in the stand, you could start this one up and the congregation would do the choir part for you, probably in harmony and everything. Every choir should know this one.

Growing as a gospel choir singer

If you’re a member of your church choir, I hope and pray that the reason you joined the choir is because of your love for God and your desire to worship and serve Him. You have the faith part already, and the virtue (righteousness) part is between you and God (or, at least, if you have issues in that area, you need to be seeking help from someone other than me 🙂 ). The purpose of this page is to help you in adding knowledge that will help you in your ministry as a choir member.

Learning how music works

Music is something that comes to us naturally, just like language. As toddlers, we learn to talk long before we learn reading, writing, spelling, and grammar. In the same way, we learn to hear music and sing it without knowing anything about tonality and scales and meter.

But if you never learned how to read and spell, you would miss out on much that the English language has to offer (great books, magazines, the internet). Similarly, learning a little about the technical aspects of music can enrich your experience of music as well as making it easier for you to perform as a choir singer and do more advanced types of music.

That’s what we’re going to talk about here.

MusicTheory.net
You might want to check out this online set of lessons in music theory.

Understanding music: Keys and scales

What does it mean when we say a song is in the key of C or B-flat or whatever else? It’s something that’s become a part of all of us as we grew up listening to music. When you hear a piece of music, you can tell that there’s one note that’s the foundation of the tune. That’s the note that everything is leading to. When you reach that note, you feel like the tune has come to a resting place. Listen to this example:

Now it feels like it’s come all the way home. That last note is the key note for the song. In music terms, it’s also called the tonal center or tonic. In the clips you heard, the tonic was an E note, so the song was being sung in the key of E. We can sing the song with a different tonal center and make the same melody. Here is the tune in the key of A-flat:

A scale is the series of notes that are used in a particular key. In the key of C major, the notes that make up the scale are:

C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C

These notes are the scale tones for the C major scale. If you sing them in order, they sound like the familiar “do-re-mi” song: C major scale

Numbers are assigned to each scale tone. The tonic gets the number 1, the next note in the scale is 2, and so on. So in the key of C major, tone number 1 is C, number 2 is D, number 3 is E. There are seven scale tones in a normal scale, and after number 7 then you’re back to number 1.

In other keys, different notes make up the scale. In the key of E major, the notes of the scale are:

E – F-sharp – G-sharp – A – B – C-sharp – D-sharp – E

The tonic is E, the 2nd is F-sharp, the 3rd is G-sharp, etc.

If you sing those notes, you get the same scale, just in a higher key: E major scale

If we go back to the song we were using, we can express the notes in the first line by using the scale tones:

5 – 3 – 2 – 3 – 2 – 1 – 1 – 1 – 6 – 1 – 6 – 5 – 1 – 1 – 1 – 3 – 3 – 2

No matter what key we’re in, those scale tones in that order will produce that melody.

As you practice singing and listening to music, you’ll start to get a feel for what the scale tones sound like. This will help you understand and remember your choir parts. For example, on a particular song, the sopranos might be starting on the third, the altos on the tonic, and the tenors on the fifth. If you understand that, it will help you keep your place and know where you’re going.

A tip for hitting that first note right

Sometimes when singers are coming in with their first notes of a song, I will hear them start on a note that’s close to the right one, but not quite there. Then they have to slide up to the real note.

One way to avoid this is to sing the note to yourself very quietly, or even just sing it in your mind. It really will help you get that first note straight on. Try it!

Tutorial video on singing high notes

Everybody can profit from this. Here’s another instructional video from Eric Arceneaux. This one is about hitting high notes smoothly without screeching.

The World Children’s Choir with President and Mrs. Geroge W. Bush — Photo from Wikimedia Commons.

Choir decorum

Elisha Mitchell has a nice list of suggestions about choir etiquette. Some of them are practical tips, others are spiritual.

Some of my favorite practical suggestions from the list:

If you know you need extra help, bring a portable tape player. Record the rehearsal so you can practice at home.

Try singing music from a different era or style. This may be challenging but it serves to reach a diverse audience. And sometimes an “oldie but goodie” is right on time.

Whenever possible, a lead singer should test the microphone before a program. If this is not possible, you can also hear what it sounds like when someone else is using it. Then you’ll know how far away to hold it or whether to use it at all.

And some of my favorite spiritual points:

Sing the song you aren’t particularly fond of with a good attitude. It may be exactly what someone else needs to hear.

Harping on someone else’s inability will reduce the choir’s overall effectiveness to minister. Edify or hush.

Open your heart to be a channel for God to minister to others. To have that focus is especially helpful when you’re asked to sing a song–again!

Vocal warmup tips – A video series from Eric Arceneaux

This is something we can all work on together. I need to strengthen my vocals as much as anybody.

In these videos, Arceneaux talks about warm-up exercises that can help develop your singing technique. In this first one he spends some time introducing the series and then gets into the first exercise. Check out his whole series.

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I've got the basics down, but I need to develop more to take it to the next level.

“Thank You (Lord, for All You’ve Done for Me)” — A gospel choir standard

Everything you need to know to teach “Thank You” by Walter Hawkins to your choir.

“Thank You (Lord, for All You’ve Done for Me)” by Walter Hawkins and the Love Center Choir, was a part of the “Love Alive IV” album that was released in 1990. The song is immensely popular with gospel music fans and is a standard in the gospel choir repertoire.

Everybody knows this song and everybody loves it. As I said on my web page about Walter Hawkins songs: “Even if there isn’t a choir in the stand, you could start this one up and the congregation would do the choir part for you, probably in harmony and everything.”

What’s great about “Thank You”

What makes it one of the best choir songs around?

The message of “Thank You” is an easy one to love. Being grateful for the simple blessings of life

It’s a modern-sounding song, with references to the problems that are often faced in today’s society. The song was released in 1990, just in time for the recession of the early ’90s, so people identified with the line that says “the economy’s down, people can’t get enough pay” and “folks without homes living out in the street”. But in all of the intervening years, times have never been so perfect that the song no longer felt relevant, especially in the black community.

Lead singers love this song! The melody on the lead verses is simple but lends itself well to bending and intonation to let a singer mold it to their own style and be expressive. And the chord progression starts out very laid back and builds tension as it gets to the end of the verse where the singer and the musicians can all let loose on the last line — “Thank You Lord, for all You’ve done for me”.

Choirs love it too. The choir part has an easy groove to get into and the parts are easy to learn — even though you might not be doing it exactly the same as it is on the album. It doesn’t go too high or too low, and it’s an easy song to sing expressively.

Buy the song!

Actually, you’ll have to buy the whole album. “Thank You” isn’t sold as a single.

Overview of “Thank You”

“Thank You” was originally done in the key of Ab. It’s written for three choir parts — soprano, alto, and tenor — and a lead singer. On the original recording the choir it is accompanied by a standard gospel band.

Songwriter and publisher info for “Thank You”

“Thank You” was written by Walter Hawkins, one of the most important gospel choir songwriters of all time.

According to BMI, the publishing rights are held by LEEODD MUSIC, MALACO MUSIC COMPANY, and PEERMUSIC III LTD.

How to play “Thank You” – A video tutorial from Jarreau24 on YouTube

Richard Smallwood – A songwriter’s songwriter

Smallwood stands unchallenged in his niche as a creator of gospel music. He brings classical elements to black gospel music in a way that incorporates the best of both traditions. A lot of his music is not for novices, but for experienced singers and choirs, he inspires us to work harder, refine our skills more, and bring ourselves up to the level of this splendid music.

The songwriting of Richard Smallwood

His style of songs

One of the things I mentioned on my Andrae Crouch fan page is that much of Crouch’s music adapts well to singers and musicians of all different skill levels. Well, Smallwood stakes out a different territory. His best songs are challenging ones, the songs that you have to take some serious time rehearsing. Hearing an inexperienced choir attempt a Richard Smallwood song when they’re not ready can be painful. But when a choir is prepared and executes well, it’s a transcendent experience.

He has songs that make classical styles sound soulful and others that make gospel and blues styles sound elegant. And every composition he writes makes it clear that he understands music inside and out.

Sheet music for Richard Smallwood songs.

Sheet music is available for a lot of Smallwood’s songs, especially his later work. Sadly, some of his older songs are not available in sheet music form.

I think sheet music also sends a message to directors like me about what Smallwood wants for his music: Don’t guess at how the song goes. Do it right.

Richard Smallwood majored in piano performance at Howard University.

During his time at Howard, Smallwood and some of his classmates staged a protest.

They took over the Fine Arts Building for two weeks, demanding that Howard start including spirituals, gospel music, and jazz into their music curriculum. (McCoy)

“There is good and bad music in every genre.”

Richard Smallwood

Richard Smallwood’s musical background

The influence of many different styles of music are clearly heard in Richard Smallwood’s songwriting.

As a child, his mother took him to classical concerts frequently. Meanwhile, his stepfather made him learn and practice hymns to play on the piano at church. Richard was also listening to soul and R&B music, but that was a secret from his parents at the time (they didn’t approve of “worldly” music). Smallwood states that there is good music and bad music in every genre, there is no type of music that is all good or all bad. He never makes a conscious effort to incorporate particular musical styles into his writing. He just immerses himself in music that he loves, and it naturally flows out in his work. (McCoy)

I admire that mindset. I hear music sometimes where it sounds like the artist is trying a little to hard to write in a particular style in order to prove how sophisticated or intellectual or hip they are. It feels very self-conscious. Richard Smallwood’s example to us is to just dig into as much music as we can, follow our passions, and see what comes of it.

Richard Smallwood’s eighth-grade public school music teacher was Roberta Flack!

He says that her approach to playing the piano was a great influence on him. (Joy97)

A glimpse into Smallwood’s writing process

Here’s what Smallwood says about what makes for a good song (McCoy):

A song should be singable.

It should be memorable.

It ought to have a “hook” (some musical element that will stick in your mind when the song is over).

It should be structurally sound (have a beginning, middle, and end, just like a story).

I think one way that Smallwood follows the “singable” ideal in his music is the fact that he writes almost everything in 3-part harmony. I’m certain that he would have the knowledge and talent to write things for four-part choir with full classical counterpoint any time he wanted to (remember that last line on “Calvary”?). But he knows his target audience. He’s writing for church gospel choirs. In those choirs, the singers are used to singing in three parts, and all the harmonies go in similar motion.

One of the things I’m always curious about with other songwriters is the “chicken and egg” question — Which came first, the words or the melody. Here’s what Smallwood says: “It can come either way. Many times I’ll get a melody or a musical phrase that I’ll elaborate upon and then the lyrics will come. Other times I’ll get a lyric or a theme and then the music will come.” (GospelFlava)

Another aspect of his songwriting — “I am sort of a perfectionist, and I probably throw away more stuff that I write than I keep. I’ll go through three or four versions of a song before I get to the final version and then if I don’t like it I dump the song” (GospelFlava). I can definitely relate to that. For me, the process of songwriting includes writing lots of weak materiaI on the way to writing the one that will be a keeper.

Here are a few songs that showcase Smallwood’s songwriting talent:

Total Praise

“Total Praise” is considered by many (myself included) to be Smallwood’s masterpiece. The harmonies in this song are like no other. Through most of the verse (the parts that come before “You are the source of my strength”), every single syllable of the song makes a different chord.

Smallwood shared that he wrote the song when he was going through a very difficult time in his life, and it’s about faith triumphing over sorrow. (BostonFab)

Calvary

The studio version of “Calvary” is better than the live one, but either way it’s an unforgettable song. The blues influence beautifully complements the theme of the crucifixion.

Smallwood is on the piano in this performance.

Bless the Lord

On “Bless the Lord”, Smallwood drops some classical-sounding counterpoint right in the middle of the song in a very fun way.

What message does your music ministry want to bring this Christmas?

This page offers thoughts about the types of songs that can be used to minister during the holidays. We will look at the different messages about the Christ that are shared through Christmas music.

The story of Advent and Christmas is rich with meaning. Vocalists and choirs can find many themes and subjects to inspire choices for Christmas music to use in ministry. Even some songs that were not written with Christmas in mind can be beautiful expressions of the spirit of the season.

Here is a list of topics that are related to Christmas. Let each one inspire you to think of songs that relate to that subject that would be great for your church.

Songs about the baby

“And they came with haste , and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.” Luke 2:16.

Everybody loves babies, and songs about Jesus as an infant inspire feelings of love and tenderness that are a beautiful part of “the Christmas spirit”.

Songs that carry that sentiment would include Christmas carols like “What Child Is This” or “Still, Still, Still”, contemporary songs like, “Mary Did You Know?”, spirituals like “Sweet Little Jesus Boy”, and many more.

Songs about beholding and adoring Jesus

“And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down , and worshipped him:” – Matthew 2:11.

These are different from the “baby” songs because instead of focusing on Jesus himself, they focus on our own feelings and acts of worship toward him. This worship is what all of the visitors did when they were in the presence of Jesus, and these songs encourage us to do the same.

Christmas songs like “O Come All Ye Faithful” and “Now Behold the Lamb” express this feeling. But there are also lots of songs that are not actually Christmas songs that would be great in a Christmas service because they fit in with this same theme of reverent adoration and intimate worship. For example: “Here I Am to Worship” (“Here I am to worship, here I am to bow down, here I am to say that You’re my God.”) or “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” (“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face, And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace.”).

Other events from the Christmas story

Along with the birth scene, there were other events that were a part of the arrival of Jesus – the prophecies to Mary and Joseph, the journey to Bethlehem, the shepherds on the hillside, the treachery of Herod. Songs that recreate these happenings are an important part of keeping the Christmas story alive.

Examples would be songs like “We Three Kings”, “Rise Up Shepherd and Follow”, The Coventry Carol, etc.

Songs about the Advent of the Savior

“ . . . and he shall send them a saviour , and a great one, and he shall deliver them.” – Isaiah 19:20.

This is the reason WHY we needed Christmas. There was no one who was able to save mankind before Jesus came.

Songs that deal with the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus or songs about our need for a Savior remind us of the hope that Christmas brings to our lives today.

An example of a song like this is “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”.

Songs about “the Light of the world.”

“The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined . . . For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given . . .” – Isaiah 9:2,6. “In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.” – John 1:4-5.

Songs about the light of Christ are a part of the Christmas story and also fit in with the “look” that we associate with Christmas (the lights on the tree, the lights on the houses, all that pretty stuff).

One common Christmas carol that I think is really about light shining in darkness is “Silent Night”. And, of course, there’s also “The Light of the World Is Jesus”.

Following the example of the angels — corporate praise

“And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” — Luke 2:13-14.

This is different from the intimate personal worship that the wise men experienced. This is worshipers coming together to make a joyful noise of praise.

This includes songs about the angels, songs that use the same words the angels sang (in Latin, it’s “Gloria in excelsis deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis.”), or any other proclamations of praise.

“Keep Christ in Christmas” songs

“Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.” – Matthew 22:21

In the ungodly, materialistic world that we live in, these songs remind us where we as Christians want to keep our focus during Christmas.

Yes, it’s true that the winter solstice celebrations are older than Christianity, and I’m OK with secular people doing the holidays whatever other way they want to do them, but we who believe in Jesus can be at peace with the secular world and still have a holy holiday of our own. These songs are not trying to tell other people what to do, they’re reminding US of what WE want to do.

It’s especially important for our children to hear messages like this so that they will remember that even if the rest of the world sees Christmas as a time of “gimme, gimme, gimme”, we are focused on the Lord.

Songs I know that express this message include “The Real Meaning of Christmas” and “Jesus Is the Reason”.

What are “rhythm”, “meter”, and “tempo”? It’s easy to learn!

Welcome to my lesson on rhythm and meter. This is the first part of a series on understanding music (basic music theory). The series is especially written for choir singers and uses examples from gospel choir music. The set of web pages will cover the topics that I think choir members will find the most useful in expanding the knowledge and skills they need to be excellent in their ministry.

Understanding the beat gives you the foundation to know where you are in the music. Rhythm keeps everyone together and keeps the music going.

The METER is the BEAT

The first thing you want to understand is what meter is. The meter is the beat — the pulse of the music. When you hear music, you can count along with it — 1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4.

One beat is the strongest and then the other beats follow afterward. The strong beat, the “1” beat, is called the downbeat.

Most songs will have a pattern of either 3 beats or 4 beats. Songs that are in groups of 3 beats are triple meter, and groups of 4 beats are quadruple meter. Some songs sound more like they’re in groups of 2 beats rather than 4; if it’s in 2 beats, that’s duple meter.

When you hear people talk about a song being in “3/4 time”, that means triple meter. When they say “4/4 time”, that’s quadruple meter.

Here are a couple of examples. You can click on each the title to hear the song, and click on the meter chart to see the beat written out with the words underneath. Look at the chart and count along with the music:

How many questions did you get right on the quiz?

I got all 10 correct!

8-9 correct

5-7 correct

3-4 correct

0-2 correct

Total Answers 0

Total Votes 0

Here’s a song with a lot of changes in meter

The verse of this song, “Let Everything That Hath Breath”, has one measure with 4 beats, then a measure with 3 beats, then 4 again, then 3 again, then 4 for four more measures, then 3 for three measures, then 4 for two more measures before the verse repeats. After the opening verses, it stays in 4/4 time for the rest of the song.

Can you hear the changes back and forth?

4-3-4-3-4-4-4-4-3-3-3-4-4

4-3-4-3-4-4-4-4-3-3-3-4-4

Understanding the beat can help you keep your place when you sing

Understanding the beat can help you keep your place when you sing. When you know how to count out the meter, then you can tell which beat is the one where you’re supposed to start singing your part.

Listen to this example — “I’ll Make It” by Hezekiah Walker. If you count along with the beat “1 – 2 – 3 – 4”, you’ll see that the chorus of the song (where the choir sings “All right now”) starts on beat 1.

Later in the song, on the repeating chorus (“I’ll make it, I’ll make it”, which starts at about the 2:30 mark on the video), the choir starts singing their part on beat 2.

The picture at right shows a metronome, which is a tool that musicians use to keep them on a steady tempo. (If you have a drummer who’s always speeding up the songs, get him/her a metronome to use when they practice.)

The RHYTHM is the lengths of the notes and spaces in the music

This is what I mean. When you hear a tune, there will be a pattern of long notes, short notes, and pauses. That’s the rhythm.

Listen to “Now Behold the Lamb”. If you count out the meter, it’s 4/4 time. If you listen to the melody, it starts with this series of note lengths:

That’s the rhythm. If we were going to be really specific, we would notice exactly how long each note lasts. Some notes last for 4 beats, or 2 beats or 1 beat, or even 1/2 or 1/4 of a beat. The pauses in between (in music, the pauses are called “rests”) also last for a certain number of beats. When you put them all together, that’s the rhythm of the tune.

At the same time that the singers are singing the rhythm of the melody, the instruments are playing different rhythms of their own. It would sound pretty boring if the drummer played the exact same rhythm that the singers were doing: daaa – da – daaa – da – daaaa (rest) da – daaa – da – daaa – da – daaaa (rest).

In some choir songs, different sections of the choir will be singing different lines and you’ll have two or three rhythms going on at the same time, like in “Say the Word”.

Now you understand Meter, Tempo, and Rhythm!

This web page is the first of a set of pages about music theory for choir singers. More topics are in the works!